The shape of brazilian cities

Abstract

In this article I analyze the effects of the geographic format of cities on economic outcomes. Cities with different formats mean cities with different distances between points and consequently differences in service delivery, transit accessi- bility, and transportation costs. Using satellite images, I create a dataset with several statistics about the format of cities, and then use geographic natural constraints as instruments for the potential shape of cities as the identification strategy. In opposition to recent literature, I find no evidence of an effect on rent, population, and wage under different specifications and controls. This provides suggestive evidence against the external validity of previous findings under different institutional and geographic contexts.